


Kepler Visitors Center

by theneonpineapple



Series: Welcome to Kepler [1]
Category: The Adventure Zone (Podcast)
Genre: Gen, Kepler - Freeform, POV Outsider, Slice of Life, Small Towns, TAZ Amnesty
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-01
Updated: 2019-02-01
Packaged: 2019-10-20 16:02:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 893
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17625455
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theneonpineapple/pseuds/theneonpineapple
Summary: A visitor stops for directions in the small town of Kepler, WV.





	Kepler Visitors Center

**Author's Note:**

> This is the start of a series I'm writing which examines different places in Kepler, canon and non-canon, and the citizens of Kepler, canon and non-canon. It's sort of a love letter to this beautiful fictional town the McElroys have gifted me with, and goes along with my ongoing project of making a map of Kepler, complete with a list of locations and addresses.
> 
> Small warning for people speculating, without malice, on the sexuality of a third character (Indrid).
> 
> ETA: This was accidentally tagged major character death at one point but does not contain death!!

KEPLER VISITORS CENTER  
17 Tacy Rd, Kepler, WV 24927

Kepler Visitors Center was a small building at the corner of Tacy and Atlee, and to call it a Center implied it was more than a square brick building which contained a kiosk of tourist pamphlets, two barely wheelchair accessible one person bathrooms, and two ancient vending machines: one for snacks, and one for pop.

Annabel loved it. She'd been working there since high school and while she had to work as a waitress at the diner on the side to make it feasible, she got to be the face of Kepler for the few to half dozen tourists who stumbled across the center on any given week. Some folks who stayed every year for ski season would come visit her special even though they didn't need much in the way of help finding anything anymore. And of course, locals stopped by to chat, especially ones from the old folks home whose adult children had moved away from Kepler.

She was talking to Lisa Price about Mr. Tarkesian's choice to stock Wild Berry Froot Loops when one of the scant few rare strangers wandered in. Except he didn't look lost. Maybe a bit out of time, and awfully cold.

Mrs. Price looked at him and clucked her tongue.

The man turned to stare at Mrs. Price, and then lifted his hand. He turned back to Annabel. "Hello!" He said. He had a strange, high voice. "I'm looking for somewhere to park my Winnebago. I know such a park exists here and I know I'll find it, I'm just afraid without directions I will take a wrong turn and lose a tire." He said that in a single breath and with absolute certainty.

"Well, welcome to Kepler!"

"Thank you," he said. "I have high hopes for my time in this town."

"I'm Annabel Lee," she said, and then, "Yes, like the Beatles song."

At the same time he said, "You're Annabel Lee, and I won't say like the Beatles song."

Annabel stared at him.

"Ah. Well, it is very nice to meet you. I'm Indrid."

"How, uh, how did you know my name?"

He cocked his head. It made his strange sallow face look birdlike. She wondered what his expression was like behind those flat, circular sunglasses. He musta forgot he was wearing them to drive in the snow, she reckoned.

"I saw it mentioned on Yelp," he said. "You've made quite the impression on visitors, dear girl."

"Oh, thank you, that's lovely to hear. So, directions to Eastwood?"

He glanced at Mrs. Price, and then away. "Is that the park you recommend, dear?"

"Oh, yes, it's wonderful for out of town guests. There's also the Monongahela camping sites on Southside but if you're lookin for something commercial—"

"Eastwood will do just fine," he said.

"Well, the trick with Eastwood is, it's right up Eastwood Lane, but it's easy to miss the turn off for Eastwood 'cause Main goes round the bend there in Riverside and you gotta turn left just as soon as it straightens out again, or you'll drive right past it and hit a straightaway whereabouts Main turns back into Deer Creek running up towards Cass. And once you take that left you gotta take the very first right and follow til you get to a wonky intersection, and then straight til the road ends out in the campgrounds. It'll look like you're getting lost cos it'll all be abandoned stuff and woods, but don't worry, once you're on Eastwood there ain't anywhere else it can take you but Eastwood."

As she spoke she marked it all off on a map of Kepler, but she couldn't be sure he caught it 'cause he kept looking at Mrs. Price. But he thanked her warmly for the directions.

"I'll get there safely now," he said. He grinned, for some reason, and said, "Mrs. Price, mind yourself on the stairs this evening. We think of our footing on the ice but forget carpeted stairs can be just as treacherous. You ladies have a good night."

And he left.

Then he poked his head back in the door. "And it's a left outta here and then a right on Main?"

"A left on Main," said Annabel. "And thank you for visiting Kepler! Enjoy your stay!"

"I just might, Annabel Lee."

And he waved and let the door slip closed behind him.

Mrs. Price clucked. "That boy needs to eat something."

"Aw, Mrs. Price, I'm sure he eats. Some folks just run small. Whaddaya think that thing with the stairs was about?"

"Heaven only knows."

"Kinda cute, though, wasn't he?"

Mrs. Price glanced at her. "Annabel Lee, that boy can hardly feed himself, and girls are always taking such dainty bites to not eat more than the men, you'll wither away. No, no. You need yourself a man with some meat on his bones."

Annabel smiled and reached for her can of cola.

"And so does he."

Half the cola went down the wrong pipe.

"Not right for you at all, Annie – oh, are you all right?"

She sputtered wheezed and grabbed for a napkin. "I'm good," she said, choking on a laugh. "You really think—"

"As the day is long."

Annabel said, " _Mrs. Price_ —" and then paused. "Hey. How do you think he knew your name?"

**Author's Note:**

> I'm on Tumblr - my TAZ blog is @keplersheetz and I am so ready to talk about TAZ at all times.


End file.
